Ben Stokes is not interested in milestones ahead of the 100th Test. Stokes debuted against Australia in Adelaide.
England captain Ben Stokes is ready to play his record 100th Test match in Rajkot on Thursday, February 15. Ahead of that, the 32-year-old made it quite apparent that he does not dwell on milestones, as the all-rounder believes that playing the 100th Test match will make little difference.
The Christchurch-born cricketer, however, underlined that he does not want to appear ungrateful for the privileges he has received. However, the great all-rounder stated that the 100th Test is ‘only a number’ because each match he plays in red-ball cricket is significant.
“Every test is equally crucial as the next. Then there’s the next one, which will be 101; only one more. It’s a symbol of longevity, but 99, 100, or 101 make little difference. “It’s just a number,” the Durham guy explained. “I don’t want to sound as if I’m not grateful for the opportunities I’ve had, but with milestones, it’s not done until it’s done,” Stokes told the BBC.
Interestingly, Stokes made his Test debut against Australia in Adelaide in 2013. However, he failed to capitalise on his debut, but in his second Test, the southpaw scored 120 runs in the second innings in Perth. Since then, he has delivered several game-changing performances in Test cricket, with Headingley undoubtedly at the top of the list. He scored 135* runs against archrivals Australia, securing one of England’s biggest Test triumphs in recent history.
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Ben Stokes shared an update on his bowling fitness
The England skipper suffered a knee injury shortly after the end of the ODI World Cup. He is now not fit enough to play as a normal all-rounder, but he plans to hit the deck in the upcoming English summer. Speaking on the subject, the Durham all-rounder stated that he is not far from bowling, but it all relies on his body.
“It’s tiny and frequent now. We don’t have a plan for where I’ll take my intensity. It’s just how I’m feeling at the time, and I’m not getting ahead of myself. “The rest of my body needs to catch up with bowling, and this was another step forward,” Stokes said.
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